Muzzle brakes and the 300wby vanguard (UPDATE)

[R.W.Dale]

 My new vanguard like the ruger No1 I owned previously keeps trying to crack my skull even with moderate loadings. I've alredy upgraded to a bell and carlson stock , the scope is a sightron 3x9x40 which seems to have plenty of eye relief. So the next step will probably be a brake. I'm leaning twards buying one from score high gunsmithing, unless you fellas have some better suggestions.

Those of you that have brakes on your rifles, Do they tame the recoil down enouht to warrant the cost? Are they so loud that I'll go deaf shooting it in the field without hearing protection?

[Patriot_1776]

One thing about brakes, is they have two sides to the story. 

If you want a brake, I would suggest getting Weatherby's Accubrake installed if possible.  Not only can you remove it whenever you want to, it works wonders on recoil.  Without the brake, my 300 Wby. Accumark kicks a good dose.  With it, it had similar recoil to my 12 lb. Savage 10FP in .308. 

Now the other, and uglier, side of the story.

The noise is, and I mean literally, a beast.  I would not recommend shooting it without at least GOOD minimal hearing protection.  A brake doesn't make the gun louder by creating more noise.  What happens is the brake bleeds expanding gases, as well as some of the report, out the sides of the muzzle before the bullet is completely on its own.  In essence some of the sound comes back at you, whereas firing a gun without a brake, all the noise goes out the front and thus away from you.

To me, the gift of hearing is quite important, and one time only.  With that in mind, might I suggest you consider trying mercuric inserts before settling on a muzzle brake?  At least that is my two cents on the subject.  I hope it helps.
 

[R.W.Dale]

 Let me clarify, The total recoil with this rifle isn't too bad, The problem is a large portion of it is all muzzle flip causing the scope to get too close for comfort to my head.

[TreeFarmer]

I suggest that you look at having your barrel Mag-na-ported as the way to reduce muzzle flip.

[warf73]

krochus

My dad had his 300WBY Vanguard Accu ported by an authorized weatherby gunsmith.
He called Weatherby and they told him who to call. Long story short the rifle was sent to Dallas Texas. Now my dad can shoot with the break on or screw it off and install the blank and shoot it that way.

Ow and the cost was under $200 with shipping both ways.


Warf

[dukkillr]

they are so loud that you can cause real hearing loss, particularly in hunting situations where you and others around you may not have the hearing protection you need.  I hate muzzle breaks simply because they are so loud.

[Mike in Ct]

Take the recoil pad off & look at the buttstock..If you have a hole you can fit a recoil reducer in there..no hole & you will need to do some boring...The nice thing about a recoil reducer is it helps control the motion/flip...you still get hit but it changes the recoil signiture...Slows it down just a notch & I think spreads out the felt effect...As an experiment I built a 243 with a muzzle brake & a homemade recoil actuated 8 oz recoil reducer...That system works really well..kind of like a belt & suspenders...That rifle is an absolute joy to shoot..no one can believe it till they shoot it..The noise from the brake is shocking..but the gun stays on target 75 % of the time you can see your hits at 200 yds..I really like that part.The removable aspect of both parts is very useful when going hunting take the extra weight off the rifle..mike in ct

[AuProspector]

I love muzzle brakes.

I have KDFs on 3 of my 300s.  They make me a better shooter.  Much less recoil and it makes them fun to shoot.  Atleast for me it does.

Long ago, I had one of the first .300 Weatherby mags, magnaported.  The recoil was still stout, but I could shoot it one handed off of a rest and the barrel would hardly lift off the bag.  I've always regretted selling that rifle.  It was very accurate.

When your shooting a .300 mag, they are all loud, braked or not, and hearing protection is a must.

IMHO, in regards to recoil, the .300 magnums feel about like a .270 Win in recoil with a muzzle brake on and they are worth every penny.  Do it, you'll be glad you did.   

[R.W.Dale]

 It's rather timeley that this topic was brought back up, I expect my Vanguard back from the good gentelman at Scorehigh Gunsmithing tomorrow. I'll post some pics of the installation and give a range report later.

[R.W.Dale]

AS you can see I have my rifle back from having Score High Gunsmithing installing a brake.
 Overall they did a very professonal job if it weren't for me having a stainless brake fitted you wouldn't be able to tell where the brake ends and the barrel begins.
 AS for recoil this brake did not reduce recoil and muzzle flip. IT ELIMINATED IT I swear even with stout 200grn loads this rifle now kicks less than my CZ 527 in 7.62x39.

 While the rifle is louder and you wouldn't want to make a habit of shooting it without hearing protection, I don't feel as though shooting a couple three rounds in the field per year will cause any great harm. I'll be able to tell as I have my hearing tested by my employer 3 times yearly

[Jimi]

Those photos highlight something very important about muzzle brakes. Utilizing ports that are as large, or preferably larger than the caliber will tend to greatly reduce the recoil, and while louder than without a brake, the noise is substantially below what the more common brakes offer.

And God knows it makes shooting the wonderful .300 Weatherby so much more pleasant. I heartily recommend it.

[sniperVLS]

Brakes are a must if youre shooting larger calibers from the bench all day long. Makes shooting the RUMS feel like a laid back .308 and you cant put a price on that.